21 June Article about Dedication of Our Lady of Walsingham shrine for The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston’s only Anglican Use parish by Cardinal DiNardo - 3 points21 June Article about ordinations with parts of homily by Cardinal DiNardo - 3 points

Bp. Morlino was in Rome for much of the week, and Abp. Gomez has now headed to Rome in order to receive his pallium. Thankfully, for the Boys of Sunday, there are many out there who continue to attack Archbishop Dolan!

My bishops were MIA (again!) this week. It's like they've crawled into some deep dark "bishops hole" and will emerge after I've been humiliated and beaten to a pulp. Could it be a conspiracy?

Bishop Conley surfaced to perform a few bishopy duties. I will mention that Bishop Cordelione is busy fending off attacks from St. Joseph the Worker parish who hate their new pastor (which I reported on last week - so no points.) It appears I missed the part when the police were called after some parishioners entered the church to speak with him following Mass. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

Bishop Conley:

June 20: Mass and blessing of new chapel, Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) headquarters, Golden (3:15 p.m.)

June 23: “Celebrating Marriage—A Reason for Hope” benefit dinner for The Alexander House, The Wildlife Experience, Lone Tree (6 p.m.) Well scratch this one. He's didn't even speak. Does showing up and looking all bishopy and eating rubber chicken count for anything? Perhaps he proclaimed the blessing over the food. That should be at least 1/2 point, doncha think?

The Week Six standings and points are (finally!) updated. Sorry for the delay. There were no changes to the standings, and the Boys of Sunday racked up like another million points and are basically in a League Of Their Own.

*NB: So much was going on with the Eucharistic Congress, which was in Abp. Carlson's ArchD and Cdl. Burke's former ArchD that it was hard weeding through stuff. Hopefully I didn't miss too much in an attempt not to double up.

Kung's Bane logo. Can't figure out how to add a caption.My dream player, Cardinal O'Malley is at the left, I'mhoping to draft him in August. What do you think?Do you love how McManus' face goes so well on CharlieSheen's body?

Chaput(1 point) Local Catholic paper editorial regarding a misunderstanding of something Chaput had said. There is much hot-under-the-collar stuff such as...

Newton does not actually believe that Archbishop Chaput (whom he refuses to call by name) advocates that priests break the seal of the confessional. To even suggest that is irresponsible to the faithful and insulting to the archbishop’s intelligence, dedication to the faith, and pastoral sense. It also shows Father Newton’s ignorance of or disregard for the specifics of Canon Law.

Priests aren’t being “thrown under the bus,” if the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” is followed correctly, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver affirmed.

Archbishop Chaput has confronted the problem of clergy sexual abuse in his diocese. He also addressed the broader impact of clergy misconduct on a global religious order as the Vatican’s U.S. apostolic investigator of the Legion of Christ. He has emerged as one of the Vatican’s “go-to” episcopal investigators.

Archbishop Chaput(Sha-poo, emphasis on second syllable)

Last year, when allegations of sexual misconduct involving minors were leveled against two Denver priests, Archbishop Chaput immediately placed each priest on administrative leave. He publicly noted their record of service and stressed the assumption of innocence for the accused. But he also defended his prompt action, describing it as “a necessary course to protect people’s trust in their parish and in the archdiocese. In this case, and in any other such case that may occur in the future, we follow diocesan and national policies that exist to serve the safety of our people and to respect the suffering and dignity of victims. These priorities are vitally important, and they will not change.”

“The more that Catholic universities or hospitals mute their religious identity; the more that Catholic social ministries weaken their religious character ... the less useful to the Gospel they become,” he said.

Meet Archbishop Chaput, Our MVP!

I crave your indulgence, just one more video. You've got to get to know this guy. He's AMAZING! I'm so sorry that Scott, the manager of Kung's Bane is not able to manage right now, but, what a blessing to get to know these amazing bishops!

"As Catholic social agencies and hospitals in America face growing persecution from secularist, anti-life forces, they must embrace a radical faithfulness and a vigorous Catholic identity if they are to survive", said Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Denver this week.

“The more that Catholic universities or hospitals mute their religious identity, the more that Catholic social ministries weaken their religious character ... the less useful to the Gospel they become,”

(1 point) The Archbishop is quoted in an article about a schismatic group in Trenton, New Jersey. The piece was published June 24 in The Atlantic Highlands Herald, an online paper.

"Christianity is both a comfort and challenge. When we accept what is comforting without accepting what challenges us, we stop striving for holiness. When we dispute what we do not understand, instead of prayerfully and earnestly seeking truth, we stop seeking Christ. "

(3 points) Trinity homily posted audio feed during the week following Trinity Sunday. He combines this with a Father's Day message Here is the feed, a nice homily.

(1 point) His address on June 21 for Catholic Social Workers National Association is titled "Renewing the Mission of Catholic Charities. This address was written about above and already earned 3 points. The Archdiocese published the address online in the middle of the week.

Bishop McManus(1 point) blog post about his appointment of financial officers for the diocese.

“I am pleased to announce at this time that I have appointed Jerry Jussaume and Carol Adams as co-directors of the diocesan Office of Fiscal Affairs,” the bishop said. “They will succeed Msgr. Thomas Sullivan who has served as the director of the office for the past several years but who has now been appointed as a pastor.”

Bishop McManus has appointed Jerome D. Jussaume and Carol A. Adams co-directors of the diocesan Office of Fiscal Affairs, effective July 1.

(1 point) Bishop McManus donated his easement to the City of Milford for their town improvements. He was one of several land and business owners to do so. This published online and in Milford's town newspaper June 22.

(1 point) On the blog, The Anglo-Catholic, Bishop McManus is part of a list of Catholic Bishops who are to implement the new Anglo-Catholic rite in the United States. The author quoted Chesterton liberally. Very nice!

(3 points) In the secular, Worcester Telegram and Gazette, Bishop McManus is reported to be moving new priests into several churches because they were just ordained and other priests are set to retire.

(3 points) Bishop McManus dedicated a new, merged church after Blessed Pope John Paul II. The article posted in print and online June 25, 2011.

“The changes in the social fabric of our communities demand changes in our parishes to meet new needs, new challenges, and, most especially, new opportunities to share the gospel of Jesus Christ,” saidBishop McManuswhen the merger was announced.

Bishop Olmsted

(3 points) This very cool article has the option of audio with actual clips of the people quoted, including Bishop Olmsted. The article discusses the high abortion rates for Hispanic women in the Southeastern US.

(3 points) The good Bishop presided over the mass for women. Many lovely and faithful women were honored after the mass. I don't know if you'll knock this down to 1 point because I don't have a direct quote from the Bishop and it was reported on a diocesan blog.

(3 points) Interview for Faith and Life TV, posted June 23.

(5 points) Bishop Olmsted suspended two priests under credible accusations of sexual misconduct with a minor.

The sexual misconduct claim involved actions that allegedly occurred over 25 years ago when Fr. Spaulding was the pastor of St. Maria Goretti parish in Scottsdale.

Bishop Olmsted accepted the Review Board’s determination, and the case will be referred to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome for further proceedings.

I will be spending the greater part of today preparing for the ordinations and Corpus Christi celebrations later this month and next. But I also have to prepare for my annual retreat which will begin Monday in Rome. Can I count on your prayers that I make a good, solid, prayerful, silent retreat? Thank you in advanceSaturday at 10:46

Remember everyone, CORPUS CHRISTI is in two Sundays. We will have Mass at 5:00 at the Cathedral, followed by the outdoor procession, Blessings of the pregnant moms and the infirm, then benediction. I hope you can join me.Friday at 19:41

There in both English and Spanish! I hope you get the chance to read this article and share with me your comments and ideas.Friday at 16:21

I have just published my article on celibacy as a 'note' for anyone who wants to read about the spiritual power of celibacy. Now I will get the Spanish translation ready to go.Friday at 16:19

Recently I wrote an article on celibacy for our Diocesan magazine. We have had it translated into Spanish too, and would like to share this article with as many Catholics as would be interested in learning something about celibacy, something about its spiritual power. Let me know if you would like a copy (be sure to tell me if you would like a copy in English or in Spanish)15 June at 19:36

The Phoenix New Times reports the Bishop Olmsted is publishing an ongoing list of priests who have committed felony sexual assault.

Spearheaded by Bishop Thomas Olmsted, the Diocese is putting out a list of sexually abusive clergymen on its newly revamped website. The unholier-than-thou inventory of pervert priests, friars, deacons, and even a bishop is meant to shed light on the abuse administered by the church over the years.

(5 points SMACK DOWN) this is a repost of a 2008 interview, but it was posted on this site just this week on June 14. I think that there should be a rule that if someone posts something anew to bring that event into a current dialogue and the piece hasn't been used in Fantasy Bishball, it's fair game. Go Chaput! Now I know how to pronounce the name. <iframe width="853" height="510" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/YY7u6wxkL0M" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Bihsop Bruskewitz & Bishop Nickless - both diocesan newspapers are on a Summer schedule which means that there will be several weeks worth of news when the next issue comes out, but until the stories are published, if any, they can't be counted.

I fished for 20 hours yesterday (yes on a Sunday, we dont have a choice the fish run when they run) and cleaned over 45 Sockeye Salmon. For some reason God packs an entire years worth of Fishing into 2 weeks in June and 2 weeks in July. It explains why Salmon is so good, and expensive.

Silent... I chose him for his orthodoxy, and I have found several blog posts about his awesomeness, just nothing that rises to the level of scoring points. I feel like I have this awesome AAA prospect, just waiting to jump in the show!

Points: [6]

I know that I am hurting in points, but my guys are solid. They just dont makes the waves of an everyday Archbishop from NY or LA - I am proud of them though!

Five teams have published - time is running out for the remaining teams!

Note: Vicious Vicars have a waiver due to connectivity issues (so Joe claims!) - and Kung's Bane has an exemption due to a change in managers. But everyone else should get their posts in today in order to be counted.

Another light week for Bishop Morlino as he is currently overseas teaching seminarians in Rome. Archbishop Gomez was quiet, likely because of the USCCB meetings. Archbishop Dolan, on the other hand, came out with guns a-blazing as he tackled the topic of gay marriage in multiple forums. This strong push from Dolan to defend marriage drew the ire of progressives, liberals and atheists. One publication went so far as to name Dolan the "d-bag of the day."

From Catholic Online:An article about the release of the second in a series of videos, "Made for Life", for the Defense of Marriage Initiative.

Bishop Cordileone, who is chairman of the USCCB committee was quoted as saying:

"Our culture is one that often forgets the sacred gift of the child, and in so doing it also fails to recognize the vital importance of a mother and a father together for the life and upbringing of that child," said Bishop Salvatore Cordileone of Oakland, California, chairman of the Committee.

"In contemporary debates about the meaning of marriage, the rights and dignity of the child should be at the forefront. The video Made for Life builds on the first video Made for Each Other and invites a renewed appreciation for the child, for mothers and fathers, and for the bond between love and life in marriage-a bond only possible through the sexual difference of husband and wife. The video also addresses a real gap today in public awareness, namely, the close connection between a culture of life and a culture that promotes and protects marriage. The two cannot be separated."

From New York Times: At the Seattle meeting Bishop Cordileone also was quoted as saying concerning the fact that some Catholics believing homosexual "marriage" is a civil rights issue: (is the previous string of words the very worse sentence you've ever read? Sister St. Philomena is in heaven crying and asking herself where she went wrong. heh)

“My reflection on this is to ask, whose rights do we really need to respect?”
“Children are the most vulnerable in society,” he concluded, “and children need a mother and a father.”

From Iobserve: concerning the new document the bishops will prepare concerning homilies

Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of Oakland, Calif., said he thought the document should focus not only on Sunday homilies but on sermons at funerals and weddings.
"I've heard very few funeral homilies, and I've been to a lot of funerals," Bishop Cordileone said. "I've heard eulogies and I've heard some canonization nominations, but I have heard very few homilies."

Celebrated a special Mass for the 150th anniversary of Old St. Patrick Church - 3 pointsDid a Q&A segment for the archdiocese's Youtube channel - 3 points (I'm taking these as tentative points -- the segment appears to have been filmed in February, but it wasn't made available on the channel until this week)

Released a statement on the Vatican's appointment of two new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Chicago - 1 pointPublished a column in the archdiocesan newspaper - 1 point

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Week Five of Bishball witnessed a reduction in scoring totals from previous weeks for nearly every team, while in the Western Conference, the Pertinacious Papists have quietly closed within 10 points of The Boys Of Sunday for most points in the league.*

The Team Everybody Loves To Hate - aka The Boys Of Sunday - posted a mere 18-points for Week 5, as Bishop Morlino was nearly shut out for the week, contributing 1-point to the team. This allowed The Crusading Croziers to close the gap, but only negligibly, as they amassed 22 points, led by an 11-point effort of Bishop Finn. The Double Z's managed only 6 points for the week, and saw their lead over the Dubuque Fighting Saints shrink to 4-points, as the Saints came in with 12 points.

In the West, the Pertinacious Papists increased their lead to an incredible 57 points, as they turned in a 29-point performance, while the second place Heresy Hunters stumbled in with 10 points. The Vicious Vicars climbed into third, despite an 8-point showing, as the Mighty Mitres could only muster 2 points for the week. Rounding out the conference are the Purple Padres, who posted a season-high 6-point week.

League management has accepted the proposal for an interim manager to take over duties of Küng's Bane. They have a tough road to hoe to competitively contend, but it's a long season. Several consecutive weeks of strong scores could see them climb the standings and put pressure on the rest of the Eastern Conference. The FBL Legal Department is finalizing the application, and as soon as the interim manager emails the FBL Commissioner, the team will be taken off of inactive status.

AoftheA Sports predicts a second relatively low week of scoring, as the USCCB June meetings are underway outside Seattle this week. However, as the summer heats up, the scoring will more than likely heat up as well.

This is based solely on "GOOGLE ALERTS" - I could barely get this page to load. I seriously am staying at a place with the slowest internet ever. I can post from my phone fine, but I cant link, and do crazy stuff like that. I didnt know we wouldnt have internet otherwise I would have gone into town this weekend and done the post. Sorry.

(1 pt??) Pupils at St. Francis of Assisi Elementary School in Concord enjoyed a lively visit with Bishop Salvatore Cordileone on May 16, peppering him with questions, including, “Do you want to be pope?” This was just published in the diocesan newspaper, even though it occurred on May 16th. You decide...

Is it possible to have only TWO points???

Larry - good suggestions in your previous post - I thank you. Every week I'm determined to do a better job of keeping up and my ADD interferes. As Dr. Hollawell, a leading ADD expert says, "for those of us with ADD, we recognize only two times - now and not now." For me, "now" happens at 9am Monday morning. "Not now" was the entire previous week.

Posted June 6 - Since I have so many new friends here, I would greatly appreciate it if you could visit our Diocesan Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/DioceseofTulsa and give it a "Like." You'll find lots of compelling and edifying news, video and photo content from throughout the Catholic world there. Thank you!

I just looked over the proofs of the Eastern Oklahoma Catholic with the stories of the ordination of Frs. Jorge Gómez (July 1) and Mike Pratt (July 9). This Sunday we have the ordination of 14 young men to the diaconate. What a blessed time for the diocese!08 June at 11:54

Quoted in new article about a Diocese of Providence priest who was named "Chaplain of His Holiness" with the title "Reverend Monsignor" by Pope Benedict XVI. Key quote: “The Diocese of Providence is very grateful for the news that Monsignor Kenney has been selected as a Chaplain of His Holiness. This selection is a wonderful recognition of his service to the Church as Rector of the Seminary and now as Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia. As I have said on so many occasions, the priests of the Providence Diocese are remarkable men, in love with the Lord, faithful to the priesthood and very generous in their many ministries." (3 pts)

Dedicated a new archdiocesan prayer garden at a local parish - 3 pointsCelebrated a special Mass during the annual gathering of the Holy Name Society - 3 pointsCelebrated a special Mass at a local parish for jubilarians in religious life - 3 pointsCelebrated a special Mass for the Lumen Cordium Society - 3 pointsThree Facebook posts this week - 3 points total

Protested against in two NcR articles about the conference and +Vigneron's condemnation of it - 5 pointsGave his blessing to the gathering of the Call to Holiness conference (quote at bottom of page) - 1 point

Friday, June 10, 2011

* This is merely a suggestion, but I've found it to work for me. On Monday, I start my current week's points post, and throughout the week, I add to it any citations, articles, blogposts, etc. I come across in my Reader. Under 'Post Options', I set the Post date and time to the upcoming Sunday and 11:00 PM (that's just what I picked - you can choose whatever time you want). You can also save the post as a Draft, and then publish it when you want. This way I'm not scrambling on the Sunday or Monday at the end of the scoring period to publish on time. It helps with formatting too. For what it's worth.

* Now that we're a month into the season, I'm going to start holding managers to publish their points posts prior to 3:00 PM EST 11:59 PM EST on the Monday after the week of play. I've accepted late submissions, but the grace period is over. Just trying to be fair to everyone who has been posting on time.

* This is a minor thing, but it's something I'm kinda anal about - please label your points post with your team name and the scoring week, at a minimum.

* Regarding Küng's Bane - bishball fan Random O.C. Christian has offered to co-manage the team for the remainder of the season. Everyone else cool with that?

The Fantasy Bishball season turns one month old, and as one team is forced to fold, another team keeps their foot on the gas pedal, and shows no sign of slowing down. If there's one conclusion that be drawn from the first four weeks of play, it's this:

The Boys Of Sunday are formidable.

They are the New York Yankees, the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Heat all rolled into one. They have quickly distinguished themselves as The Team Everyone Loves To Hate - and yet, each team manager secretly desires to have any of TBOS players on their roster.

TBOS continued to pull away from the rest of the Eastern Conference with a staggering 40 point week, led by Dolan's 16 point performance, as Gomez and Morlino each chipped in 12. The Crusading Croziers turned in a strong 24 point week - without any help from Bishop Tobin - yet they still lost ground to TBOS, who now enjoy a whopping 38 point advantage over the 2nd-place Croziers, 97-59. The Dubuque Fighting Saints mustered a mere 4 points, but it was enough to skip past the Zealous Zucchetto's for third place - provided the Double Z's fail to post before the end of the day. *UPDATE* - the Zealous Zuchhetto's posted a 12-point week, which secured their hold on third, keeping the Fighting Saints in fourth.

In the Western Conference, the Pertinacious Papists surged into first place with an impressive 31 point week, cruising past the Heresy Hunters. HH has a chance to stay close or maintain their hold on the top spot should they post today - however, a source close to the team has confided to AoftheA Sports that they may have to forfeit this week's score. If that holds, the Mighty Mitres (10 pts) and the Vicious Vicars (14 pts) closed the gap between themselves and the second-place Hunters - the MM's are now only 7 points out of second place. The Purple Padres added to their total with a 1-pt week.

A word now about Küng's Bane. Manager ScottW reluctantly placed his team on Indefinite Hiatus earlier this week, stating that Real Life circumstances have forced him to pull out of the league. League officials (that would be me) have decided to keep Küng's Bane active for the time being, should someone step forward to helm the franchise - comprised of Archbishop Chaput, Bishop Olmsted and Bishop McManus - within the next few weeks, or if ScottW can successfully appoint an interim manager. Additionally, if the team status remains unchanged by the mid-season Substitution Day, all three players would be eligible for pick-up.

A lot may happen between now and the end of the Ordinary Season - but early indications seem to show that the team to beat in the East is The Boys Of Sunday. The Western Conference is a slightly tighter race, but just slightly. The Mighty Mitres and the Vicious Vicars hope to shake their slow start and pull closer to the top two teams - each team needs consistent big point showings, week-in and week-out, to stage a comeback.

It's a long season. There will be drama and surprises, and no one can predict how things will play out. But of this we can be sure: The Boys Of Sunday are The Team Everyone Loves To Hate.

(5 pts?) A smack-down (gentle but firm) of the potential dangers of Girl Scouting and a caution for parents to be alert. Obviously it hit a nerve. The following are just some of the articles referring to his article (which I don't think earn any points, but I thought was interesting.)